Gunmen shot and seriously wounded Al Arabiya's senior correspondent in Iraq during an apparent kidnapping attempt in Baghdad on Saturday, the Arabic satellite channel said. Nabil al-Khatib, executive editor of the Dubai-based channel, said the corrspondent, Jawad Kadhem, was shot in the neck and was undergoing treatment at a Baghdad hospital. He said two gunmen approached Kadhem, apparently trying to kidnap him. Iraqi policemen at the scene fired at the gunmen, who returned fire wounding Kadhem. "He is in serious condition," The Associated Press quoted Khatib as saying, adding that their motive was not clear. Eight Al Arabiya employees have died in Iraq since the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, including three killed by U.S. forces, and five who died in a car bombing by suspected militants of its Baghdad office in October last year. --SP 1550 Local Time 1250 GMT